I'm a singer and cook trapped in the body of an HR professional. Experimenting is the name of my game. What you'll find here is a mixed bag: a treasure trove of traditional and fusion foods, all with two common ingredients, enthusiasm and love.

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The Singing Chef

July 17, 2007

Kothu Roti

I blame this all on Nupur. She made this post a few days ago about "Eating out while eating in". And that is why I am craving restaurant food.S broke his leg on Sunday and that rules out eating out for a while. (He actually tore a ligament and I am told that it is worse than having a bone fractured.) We're going to be eating out a lot for the next few days, at home that is! We started with French Bread Pizza and this is my next venture.

I have, very often, come home from a restaurant itching to recreate the dish I've just devoured. One of those has been the Kothu Parotta that I've had at Komala's in Madras. My last trip there was when we'd gone to book accommodation for the groom's party before my wedding. I ordered Kothu Parotta again and was so disappointed. The chef just dumped chilli powder over the parottas and I had to eat the dish with about 10 glasses of water. (Finally, Appa said to order a plate of idlis to undo the damage!)

Someday I'll be able to make parotta all by myself. These are best savoured at roadside shacks and Puru's opposite the Pondicherry University campus will go down in my books as one of the best Parotta Kurma joints. My dear readers may note that a parotta is very different from a paratha and the two are not the same bread. The parotta has saved me on many an occasion from the "the-mess-food-is-lousy-hence-I-will-go-to-bed-hungry" syndrome.

I had some rotis in the fridge. They were made on Saturday morning and we were fully expecting to eat them for lunch. But S went to work and when he came back it was already 4 p.m. I was busy blogging all day and didn't get up to make anything to go with the rotis. When S got home, he quickly made 2 egg rolls and we ate them before heading out. Our rotis usually have no fat in them and that makes eating them any day after they're made, rather difficult.

But then again, I am not given to wasting food or randomly giving it away. So, when I was working from home on Monday, to help S at home, I decided to use rotis instead of parottas and make Kothu Roti instead of Kothu Parotta! I was making this purely from my memory of the taste.

6 Rotis, torn into bits

1 large Onion, sliced

2-3 medium Tomatoes, chopped

1 tbsp Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

7-8 Curry Leaves

1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

1 tsp Chilli Powder

1 tsp Cumin Powder

1/2 tsp Coriander Powder

1 tsp Green Chilli paste

1/2 tsp Ginger paste

1 tsp Pav Bhaji Masala (I used MDH)

Salt to Taste

Heat the oil in a kadhai and add the mustard seeds and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the curry leaves, ginger and chilli pastes, and onions. Fry the onions for a couple of minutes. Add the tomatoes and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the chilli, turmeric, cumin and coriander powders and fry for a minute. Add the pav bhaji masala and fry for another minute or two. Add the salt and the roti bits. Mix well. Cover and cook for a couple of minutes and then cook without the lid for a couple of minutes more.

Enjoy this piping hot. Wash my roti version of Kothu Parotta down with a glass of buttermilk. It'll be a treat, I promise.

So sorry about ligament tear.It's true,it's more painful than a fracture and takes a looong time to heal too.I had one in my elbow when I was 19 and even now sometimes in winter,I can feel the ghost pain!.Hope he feels better soon.I saw this in a restaurant,but didn't know what it was! Looks delicious.Got to make parathas first.I will try:)

First things first: so sorry to hear of the broken ligament :( My sister needed a ligament reconstruction in her knee a few years ago, and I'm hoping S does not need surgery and recovers quickly. Sending good vibes his way... The kothu roti looks so tempting! Glad you two are eating well in spite of the injury and everything. I have to make extra rotis to try this out. Looking forward to more yummy eating-out recipes from you, Raaga :)

Well my husband had a legiment tore while skiing, Its not usually a problem until unless you want to be very atheltic. please do consider different doctors before going for a surgery. Here in US they do trasplantation to replace the torn legiment.The healing process requires therapy for about a year. Hope I am not scaring you its just you need to be prepared for all thisLet me know if you have any question will surely help

Thanks Sreelu. My brother in law is a very famous orthopaedician. Even though we live in a different city, we have been consulting him as well as the doctor at Max. I doubt there will be need for surgery. To cast or not to cast will be the question. :-) Thanks though.

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I'm someone who loves to talk. About everything and nothing. Hours of discussions with friends, steaming hot mugs of coffee, arguments, laughter, talking about the old times, looking forward to the new... nothing makes me happier... ever!